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What Santaluces High School grad is starring in ‘Star Wars?’

The upcoming movie, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” opens on Thursday in what is anticipated to be one of the largest openings in cinematic history. Near the front of the release is star Oscar Isaac, who is playing Poe Dameron in the film, and is also a graduate of Santaluces High School in suburban Lantana, the Miami Herald reports.

The 1997 graduate, who also starred in “Inside Llewyn Davis” and this year’s “Ex Machina,” was known then as Oscar Hernandez (Isaac is his middle name) and moved to the area after Hurricane Andrew demolished his family home. Isaac moved to the Delray-area and began acting with local production companies while attending Miami Dade College.

At that point, he met up with John Rodaz, the Area Stage theater founder and artistic director, which is where he made a lifelong friend and believer in his craft. “Oscar had a natural ability right from the start,” he said. “He had a great magnetism and presence onstage. That is something you have to be born with. It’s innate. But he also liked to talk about the history of theater and the acting process. That’s what brought us together. He was interested in learning and growing. He questioned everything. You very rarely come across people like that. A lot of actors get wrapped up in the glamour of it and forget you need to establish a foundation if you want to grow.”